TWO HALVES & A WHOLE

Sisters, sisters-in-law, or strangers on the internet - partnerships in fashion have stemmed from places expected and otherwise. Ashwini Arun Kumar talks to co-founders of four women-led businesses who are impressive halves that make exceptional wholes

- Ashwini Arun Kumar

THE SUMMER HOUSE IS A RESERVOIR OF MINDFUL, FEMININE STYLES HANDCRAFTED BY ARTISANS FROM VULNERABLE CRAFT COMMUNITIES

SHIVANGINI PADHIYAR & REKHA DATLA

CO-FOUNDERS OF THE SUMMER HOUSE

Our journey together was written in the stars,” quips Shivangini Padhiyar. Forget finding love on the internet, she met her business partner Rekha Datla on the web when the latter looked her up and approached her for a design project. “Over a very random conversation, we spoke of working together and, the next thing you know, The Summer House became an e-commerce fashion brand.” Known for its clean silhouettes, sophisticated colour palette, easy wearability, and sustainable approach to fashion, The Summer House is a reservoir of mindful, feminine styles handcrafted by artisans from vulnerable craft communities. “Initially, we did everything together; then, over time, we found our individual strengths and focused on that part of the business,” says Rekha, who navigates the tricky minefield of the business side of things with her people skills and troubleshooting abilities, while Shivangini brings in her decade-long brand-building experience along with creativity to the table. “I manage everything behind the scenes and Shivangini oversees everything that is customer-facing,” Rekha says. For them, sharing the same value system objective – the welfare of those who create the brand’s clothes – and minimising the impact of fashion on our already strained ecosystem surpass the other tangible metrics of business.